The Terrorism and Disaster Committee of the NCTSN has developed a new set of resources to support families during times of evacuations. Simple Evacuation Activities for Children and Adolescents includes ideas for activities families can do with few or no supplies, during or after an evacuation, in the car or at a shelter. You may download these individually or as a complete set.

Presenters will discuss how child serving systems can improve their response to the needs of youth that are involved with both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Drawing from the framework provided in the Crossover Youth Practice Model, presenters will look at various decision points in the case of a young person, identify how the system can improve its functioning, and describe trauma-informed interventions best suited for the youth.

The Resource Parent Committee will launch a new online series of webinars exploring the Resource Parent Curriculum. Each quarterly webinar will cover a different aspect of utilizing the curriculum, such as curriculum tools, best practices, and adapting the curriculum in work with non-resource parents. To find the date of the October webinar, please check the Learning Center calendar located on the homepage.

NCTSN Military Families Learning Community

School and Behavioral Health Support Services for US Army Children and Families

Faculty will feature an update on US Army Behavioral Health Services, including (1) types of services and initiatives available to soldiers and their families, (2) challenges facing military children and families, (3) coordinated assets (military and civilian) with focus on prevention and resilience, (4) and the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program. Dr. Faran will describe Army School Behavioral Health Programs, Child and Family Assistance Centers, and trainings and/or services available through CAF-BHP. Following the presentation, Dr. Faran will answer questions.

The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention, along with the US Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, released the revised National Strategy for Suicide Prevention: Goals and Objectives for Action (NSSP), which emphasizes the role every American can play in protecting their friends, family members, and colleagues from suicide. Based on nearly a decade of research and other advancements in the field that have occurred since the last report was published, the revised NSSP provides guidance for schools, businesses, health systems, clinicians, and many other sectors. The NSSP stresses that suicide prevention efforts should (1) foster positive public dialogue to counter shame, prejudice, and silence and to build public support for suicide prevention; (2) address the needs of vulnerable groups—including being tailored to the cultural and situational contexts in which they are offered—and seek to eliminate disparities; (3) be coordinated and integrated with existing efforts addressing health and behavioral health and ensure continuity of care; (4) promote changes in systems, policies, and environments that will support and facilitate the prevention of suicide and related problems; (5) bring together public health and behavioral health; and (6) promote efforts to reduce access to lethal means among individuals with identified suicide risks.

Network Members Erna Olfason and Patricia Kerig are the editors of two Special Issues released by the Journal of Child and Adolescent Trauma: Trauma and Juvenile Delinquency Part I: Dynamicsand Developmental Mechanisms and Trauma and Juvenile Delinquency, Part II: New Directions in Interventions. Both issues contain articles authored by Network Members and include topics such as evidence-based treatment with delinquent youth; PTSD, depression, dissociation and recidivism among delinquent youth; and delinquent decision-making and behaviors among adolescent females.

Network Members Wendy D'Andrea, Julian Ford, Bradley Stolbach, Joseph Spinazzola, and Bessel van der Kolk are the authors of Understanding Interpersonal Trauma in Children: Why We Need a Developmentally Appropriate Trauma Diagnosis in American Journal of Orthopsychiatry (Volume 82, Number 2). The article summarizes research that suggests directions for broadening current diagnostic conceptualizations for victimized children. Due to the wide range of symptoms commonly found, multiple comorbid diagnoses are necessary—but not necessarily accurate—to describe many victimized children, leading potentially to both undertreatment and overtreatment. Authors also review the findings regarding biological correlates of childhood victimization and the treatment outcome literature, and they recommend future directions for research on enhancing diagnosis and treatment of victimized children.

The Learning Center contains almost 200 webinars spanning 18 different topic areas. Missed a past presentation? Watch it "on demand" at the Learning Center whenever you have time. Participated in a live version of a webinar and would like to listen again? You can—no waiting. New to the Learning Center? Come explore—you'll find a wealth of knowledge. Want to earn FREE Continuing Education Units? Easy—log on today!

New Sharing Buttons!

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Webinar Alerts!

Starting this month, we will send email reminders the day before any webinar in which you are enrolled. This courtesy email will remind you of the title of the event taking place the next day, the time, the Speaker Series sponsoring the webinar, the presenters, and how to view and listen to the presentation.